Victims of Circumstance
by 42-27-42
Summary: 8059 Yamamoto has a crush on Gokudera, but Gokudera is hopelessly oblivious. Then he overhears something and misunderstands. Soon everyone in the mansion is a victim of this unfortunate circumstance.
1. Monday Blues

**a/n: **So this first time I published this I accidentally uploaded the draft instead of the finalized chapter. Oops! Here's the correct chapter.

**Summary:** 8059 Yamamoto has a crush on Gokudera, but Gokudera is hopelessly oblivious. Then he overhears something and misunderstands. Soon everyone in the mansion is a victim of this unfortunate circumstance.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or any of its characters.

"speaking" _thinking_

**xxxxx**

**Victims of Circumstance Chapter One: Monday Blues**

Monday would forever be Tsuna's least favorite day. He could already feel the headache coming on as he looked at a stack of paperwork that was up for review and approval. Every Monday Tsuna had to carefully review and then approve or reject any propositions that had been made last week, even ones he had made. His inevitable headache was now in full force after reading Ryohei's proposition that Hibari's quarters be labeled "Dangerous to the Extreme!" in gigantic red letters so that no one would accidentally trespass and be bitten to death. How Ryohei had managed to wander into Hibari's quarters was beyond Tsuna. Kyoko's brother was probably "training to the extreme" and failed to notice where he was until it was too late.

After that last ridiculous proposition by Ryohei, Tsuna had moved on to the jobs that needed assigning. His external advisor Basil sat with him reviewing some of the next jobs. It had taken Tsuna some time to get used to having Basil as his advisor. His father and Reborn had conspired and made it so that Tsuna had no say whatsoever in who his external advisor was. Still, Tsuna wouldn't have chosen anyone else from CEDEF even if he could have. Basil was extremely patient and helpful and they saw eye-to-eye on most things. Currently Basil reading mission reports from last week while Tsuna was approving upcoming missions.

Basil heard a startled, "Eh! What is this?"

Alarmed, he said, "What is it, Sawada?" Then he saw what appeared to be an offending piece of paper in the hand of the Vongola Boss.

Relaxing a bit he glanced at the paper and explained, "Oh that, it's just the next job for Yamamoto and Gokudera. I know it probably doesn't require two guardians, but there's been a bit of trouble in that sector lately. A new start-up family. They're just a bunch of rookies really, but it's a slow week. It can't hurt to send them both."

**xxxxx**

Gokudera tore down the halls to Tsuna's office, bowling over several innocent mobsters and one very frustrated looking Haru along the way. He couldn't wait to show the Tenth his new idea. It was a clever strategy for a large-scale assault with various new weapons (mostly bomsbs) that would no doubt give them the upper hand in any attack situation. The storm guardian raced to tell his boss. _He'll be proud to have chosen me as his right hand man once he sees this!_

**xxxxx**

"Yeah, you're right, Basil. It' just I don't think that would be all that good for Yamamoto right now. I don't think he could handle another overnight mission with Gokudera."

"What do you mean? Yamamoto and Gokudera are a good pair, despite their differences and frequent bickering."

Tsuna sighed as he tried to explain. Once again his hyper intuition had clued him into something others might now of noticed, and it was awkward trying to catch Basil up. "Haven't you noticed how they've been acting lately? I think there's something going on between them?"

"Like what?" Basil asked.

"Like maybe they're a little more than friends? I don't know for sure, but if they aren't, I'm sure they soon will be. It's obvious Yamamoto is really fond of Gokudera."

"But Gokudera always yells at him and calls him names."

"Gokudera is...complex. People show affection in different ways."

"I see. Well, at any rate, it's clear Gokudera would definitely be the worst choice. Let's send someone else. How about Lambo? Thunder often accompanies rain, and Yamamoto is experienced enough now to keep Lambo in check. Besides, Lambo has matured a lot as of late."

**xxxxx**

Gokudera was just about to burst in and reveal his genius to the tenth. It had taken him a lot longer to get there, because of an unfortunate run-in with Bianchi in the hallway. With truly improbable and completely dreadful timing that only he could have, the storm guardian arrived right in time To hear Tsuna and Basil's last bit of conversation. Gokudera was by no means in the habit of eaves dropping, but his curiosity was peaked, and so he silently listened to the next words from the Tenth. "Yeah. I think you're right, Basil. Lambo has gotten less... well... he has grown up a lot. As expected of the Vongola Hyper Intuition. I'm glad you spotted that. We'll switch Gokudera out for Lambo immediately."

That finished Basil stood up and stretched saying,"Well, I don't know what I'm going to do without another cup of coffee. I'm headed to the kitchens. Can I get you one too? Maybe some aspirin for that headache?"

Tsuna decided not to ask how Basil knew about the headache. They had been doing the Monday reports together for long enough, that Basil no doubt recognized the signs of Tsuna's headaches. "Yeah," Tsuna replied, "Both of those would be great. You know, I think I'm going to write a proposition that I put a coffee maker in here and some medicine."

"You could, but then you would have to fill out all the paperwork and review it next week. Besides, it wouldn't give us an excuse to get up and stretch our legs." Basil retorted as he walked out the door. For a moment, he thought he saw a fleeting figure disappearing around the corner to the west wing.

_Hmm... Someone here at this hour of the morning? Not likely. Nearly all the guardians are night owls and the others have no business being here. I must just be even more tired than usual. I don't know why. I wasn't up too terribly late last night. I think this whole mansion has a serious case of the Monday blues._

**xxxxx**

Gokudera ran back to his quarters in a state of complete despair. His brilliant battle tactics were forgotten as he trudged desolately through the west wing to his sanctuary. _I just don't understand what I did to make the Tenth think I'm unfit for jobs, especially ones that Lambo could handle! _He stumbled into his room and slid dejectedly down to the floor after shutting the door. Slamming his fist against the wall, he screamed, "Why doesn't the Tenth think I can be trusted to do jobs anymore, and why send Lambo instead? How the hell is that stupid cow better than me?"

**xxxxx**

Lambo sneezed for the second time during his training with I-pin. "Someone must be thinking about you!" I-pin declared as she avoided one of Lambo's more brutal assaults.

**xxxxx**

**a/n:** so that's it for chapter one. I should have chapter two up by this time next week. Please review, especially if you noticed any errors so that I can fix them. I know there wasn't much Yamamoto x Gokudera action in this chapter. Trust me people, we're getting there.


	2. Calm Before the Storm

**a/n: **So this first time I published chapter one I accidentally uploaded the draft, which is why some of it probably didn't make any sense. It's corrected now, so you'll probably want to go back and re-read chapter one. Sorry for the mistake. I tried to make it up by posting chapters 2 and 3 early. Enjoy!

**Summary:** 8059 Yamamoto has a crush on Gokudera, but Gokudera is hopelessly oblivious. Then he overhears something and misunderstands. Soon everyone in the mansion is a victim of this unfortunate circumstance.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or any of its characters.

"speaking" _thinking_

**xxxxx**

**Victims of Circumstance Chapter Two: Calm Before the Storm**

Tuesday dawned bright and beautiful with Yamamoto and Lambo standing in Decimo's office ready to receive the details of their new mission. All in all it was fairly straightforward, and Tsuna was hoping they wouldn't see any action at all. They were meeting with three smaller families to hammer out the details of an alliance. With the Vongola on the rise under Tsuna's control, there shouldn't be any problems.

As Tsuna briefed them on a few of the details, he reflected this choice of guardians. Yamamoto had long been established as a superb negotiator. He was clam and easy-going, full to the brim with rains tranquility. At the same time, he was known as the deadliest swordsman alive and was (as Reborn so frequently pointed out) a born hitman. He seemed to know exactly when to keep things relaxed and when to get serious.

Any other time Gokudera would go with him, but in truth that was no longer necessary. Initially, Gokudera had known the most about the mafia world, being the only guardian who came from that world other than Lambo, who was much too young to be of any help. Gokudera also spoke the best Italian, so he was an obvious choice for a negotiator. As the years passed, however, those things no longer mattered. They all spoke Italian fluently now and were intimately familiar with the mafia's politics.

_There's no doubt Yamamoto is the right choice _thought Tsuna. _I just hope sending Lambo with him will work out. Yamamoto has the patience to deal with Lambo if he starts to act too immature. Everything will be fine...I hope. _

After Tsuna was finished debriefing the two guardians, he excused them to do finish his paperwork. As they left he called out to Yamamoto. "Wait just a minute. Actually, there was something I wanted to talk to you about."

"Sure thing, Tsuna. What's up?"

"Well, I'm just worried about Lambo. He's never been on a mission of this kind before. Just watch out for him okay. He should be fine."

"Everything should be fine. It'll actually be a lot calmer than usual I think. Lambo can be a handful, but Gokudera is always so rambunctious. Some of our negotiations nearly ended with him stuffing dynamite down another family's throat. To tell the truth, though, I'm a little surprised you didn't assign him for this mission."

It was a casual enough statement, but Tsuna had been working with Yamamoto long enough to hear the real question: _Why didn't you assign Gokudera as my partner?_

"To tell the Truth," Tsuna explained, "I don't know where you and Gokudera stand, with each other I mean. I didn't want to put you in an awkward situation if there's something going on."

"Found out I see!" Yamamoto let out one of his trademark laughs and sheepish smiles before saying, "Actually, there's nothing going on between us. We're just friends."

Tsuna nodded, but again he had heard those unsaid words: _There's nothing going on, but I wish there was. _

"Well, speaking of Gokudera, there was something I needed to speak to him about. Would you mind finding him and sending him my way?"

"Sure thing Tsuna"

**xxxxx**

Yamamoto found Gokudera in the sandstorm training room, working through a particularly rigorous simulation. "Hey, Gokudera!"

"What do you want, damned baseball idiot! Can't you see I'm training?"

"Actually, Tsuna asked me to come find you. I think he wants to see you."

"The Tenth? Okay. Was there anything else, baseball idiot?"

"Ah, not that I remember."

"Che."

With that, Gokudera quickly left the training room and headed towards Tsuna's office under Yamamoto's watchful eye. _That was odd. Gokudera's usually more animated. He must just be eager to see Tsuna. _

**xxxxx**

To, Tsuna, however, Gokudera seemed anything but eager. He was not his usual animated self, but it was clear that his determination was still there. Tsuna had read over Gokudera's new assault plan he had turned in to Tsuna late yesterday, and he brought Gokudera in to discuss them. After explaining this much, Tsuna continued, "It's an excellent strategy, and I'd like to run through a simulation of it a couple of times. However, I don't think this is really the type of thing the guardians typically handle. A job of this nature would usually be something the Varia would handle. That's why I want you to teach them this strategy.

"I have already sent a memo to Xanxus explaining that I need all of his captains as well as a number of members from the Levi Lightning Squad to come to our base for a training simulation. I know that working with the Varia is always...challenging, but I have faith in you. I know that you can do it, Gokudera. I've told Xanxus to plan on being without his captains for about a week while they run through the training, but he knows it might take longer. There's no rush, and if you need anything just let me know."

"You can count on me, Tenth."

"Good, well, they will be arriving late tonight. Meet them in the third training room at nine o'clock tomorrow morning."

"Understood."

Gokudera nodded before quietly leaving the room. Again, it struck Tsuna as odd, an uneasy and wholly unnatural stillness. _Like the calm before the Storm. _


	3. The Return

**Summary:** 8059 Yamamoto has a crush on Gokudera, but Gokudera is hopelessly oblivious. Then he overhears something and misunderstands. Soon everyone in the mansion is a victim of this unfortunate circumstance.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or any of its characters.

"speaking" _thinking_

**xxxxx**

**Victims of Circumstance Chapter Three: The Return**

"VOOOIII! Lussuria, get in your position, damnit!"

"Okay~"

Lussuria finally walked/wiggled over to his position, but that wasn't the end of Gokudera's problems. Bel had drifted to the right again and was failing to use the right weapons, opting instead for his trademark knives."

"Bel, damn you, put those knives away and use the smoke screen bombs like you're supposed to."

Ushishishi, how dare you question royalty, commoner." With that, Bel launched several knives in Gokudera's direction, which Gokudera narrowly dodged before insisting yet again that Bel use the correct weapons.

"VOOOIII! Bel, use the bombs. If you keep messing up, we'll be stuck here forever. When we get back late and the boss asks what took so long, I'm telling him it was your fault!"

That finally seemed to straighten Bel out. Still, Gokudera's nerves were already shot straight to hell. Within an hour, no within just a few minutes, of working with the Varia, Gokudera had known this week would be hell. He hated them all- Levi's creepy facial hair and obsession with Xanxus, Bel's superior attitude and weird laughter, the bizarre frog guy who seemed to be devoid of any personality, and Lussuria just, well pretty much everything about Lussuria. More than anything, though, it was Squalo that was driving him crazy.

Gokudera had known that he and Squalo were different, though both are the right hand man and strategy captain of their teams, Gokudera couldn't seem to get on with Squalo for one reason. _It's like he has no idea what his job is. _Gokudera thought irritably. _Doesn't he realize his flame is rain? His attribute is tranquility. He should be cool and calm, but no. The man runs around screaming "VOOOIII!" all the time. It's like he only has one volume: loud-enough-to-blow-your-eardrums-out. Couldn't he tone it down a bit and just once act like he's the wielder of the rain flame? _

**xxxxx**

It had been another trying day, but all the hard work had finally come to fruition. At long last the Varia were now able to consistently complete the simulation. Gokudera, along with Squalo, headed towards the Tenth's office to give his report of the success. As the two mean headed down the hallway, they saw Yamamoto and Lambo just leaving the Vongola Boss's office.

"Oh, Gokudera, hi!" Turning toward their direction, Yamamoto smiled his trademark 1000 watt smile.

Before Gokudera had a chance to respond, Squalo stomped up to Yamamoto screaming, "VOOOIII! What about me, brat? Ignoring me won't get you out of a fight! You owe me a sparring match, brat. Let's go."

"Squalo, oh, but I-"

"No excuses. Let's go." Yamamoto gave one fleeting look at Gokudera as Squalo dragged bodily down the hallway. _I haven't seen him in a week _Yamamoto thought sadly. _I was hoping to get a chance to talk to him._

As Yamamoto was dragged down the hall, Gokudera pushed open the door to the Tenth's office. As usual, the Vongola Boss was surrounded by paperwork. Gokudera could see that familiar wrinkle in Tsuna's brow as he stared down at a sheaf of documents before him. "Is something the matter, Tenth?"

"Oh, Gokudera, no nothing's the matter. I was just checking over our new alliance agreement."

"The mission was a success then?"

"Yeah, Yamamoto and Lambo did a great job. I'm so relieved. Now we won't have to fight those families anymore. For once, we're saving lives instead of taking them."

Gokudera didn't respond at all, but stood silently wishing that he were able to impress the Tenth as much as the baseball idiot and that stupid cow had. His train of thought was interrupted when Tsuna asked, "Gokudera, what's the matter?"

"N-nothing, Tenth!"

"Okay, well I know something's bothering you. I won't pry. Just know that if you ever need to talk, I'm always here."

"Thanks, Tenth!" _I couldn't possibly burden you with this. As your right hand man I should be helping you with your problems, not burdening you with more._

"So, Gokudera, was there something you wanted to talk about or..."

"Oh, yes," With his mind back on track, Gokudera delivered his succinctly and with the minimum amount of complaints about the infuriating nature of the Varia. After that, he left Tsuna and again headed to train. Of late, Gokudera had spent nearly every moment he wasn't with the Varia training. Now that they were gone, he relished the chance to fully devote himself to his training again.

**xxxxx**

After Squalo was satisfied that Yamamoto's skill was progressing, and after they had both nearly collapsed of exhaustion, he bid farewell to Yamamoto with an arrogant, "You may have gotten a little better, but you're still a brat who doesn't know true devotion to the sword."

With that, he left Yamamoto alone in the training room. After a few cool down stretches, Yamamoto decided to search for a certain storm guardian. It was late now, but Yamamoto was fairly confident Gokudera would still be awake.

His search didn't take long. He found Gokudera in another one of the training rooms running through another complex simulation. He was about to leave Gokudera be (it was obvious the man was undergoing some intense training) when he took a second look at Gokudera's condition. He was clearly exhausted, but that was nothing new. Training was hard work. It was more than that. There were dark circles under his eyes, and he seemed to have a reckless, almost frantic look to him that worried Yamamoto. Whenever Gokudera got that look it was a safe bet he was about to do something incredibly stupid.

"Gokudera!" Yamamoto called out to him. "What are you doing?"

"What the hell does it look like him doing? I'm training baseball idiot!"

"Ah, yeah, you just seem a little tense."

"Of course I'm tense I'm training!"

"Yeah, but, you seem really upset. Did something happen?"

"I'm so fed up with people telling me I look upset! I'M NOT UPSET! I'M FINE!"

"Okay, you just seemed a little upset to me."

"WELL OF COURSE IM UPSET-"

_Wow what a quick turnaround_ thought Yamamoto.

"-WHEN A DAMNED BASEBALL IDIOT AND A STUPID COW ARE BETTER THAN ME!"

"Wait, what? Gokudera, what are you talking about?"

"Idiot, I"m talking about how you and that stupid cow got sent on that mission, and I didn't. It's obvious that the Tenth doesn't have faith in my abilities. That's why I have to train as hard as I can, to prove to the Tenth that I am worthy to be his right hand man. Now, stop wasting my time, damned baseball idiot. I have training to do."

"Actually, Gokudera, it's my fault you didn't go on that mission. So, no need to work yourself to death okay?"

"What...WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO?" With speed Yamamoto didn't think the boy would have after such rigorous training, Gokudera slammed him against the wall, nearly choking him.

Yamamoto motioned frantically for Gokudera to release him, and reluctantly, Gokudera complied. When he could at last breathe again, Yamamoto explained, "Tsuna didn't want to send the two of us on a mission together, because, well, he knows that I like you. haha..."

Gokudera folded his hands in thought and let out a "hmmm." Yamamoto stood, heart pounding with a terrible anxiety, until Gokudera said, "I don't get it."

"I like you...you know...as more than friends. I want you to be my boyfriend."

"Oh, yeah I guess the Tenth not sending me on the mission makes sense now-Wait... YOU WHAT?"

**xxxxx**

**a/n: **Secrets out! Now what? The next chapter will be up this time next week, but reviews will definitely help get it done faster. So please review!


	4. Tsuna's Question

**a/n: **Special thanks to Shimaki-33, TheLuciferPerson and RejectedByMostButLovedByAll for the awesome reviews. I really appreciate it! Here's the next chapter just for you guys.

**Summary:** 8059 Yamamoto has a crush on Gokudera, but Gokudera is hopelessly oblivious. Then he overhears something and misunderstands. Soon everyone in the mansion is a victim of this unfortunate circumstance.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or any of its characters.

"speaking" _thinking_

**Victims of Circumstance Chapter Four: Tsuna's Question**

"WHAT THE HELL? NO, I WON'T BE YOUR BOYFRIEND!"

"Oh, okay, I kind of already knew that. Can't hurt to ask though, right?"

"Che, whatever idiot, since when are you gay anyways? Don't you like girls?"

"Actually, I do like girls, but I like guys too, and I don't like anybody nearly as much as I like you, Gokudera!"

"Stop saying that crap, and get the hell away from me! Can't you see this is all your fault?" True to his flame's namesake, Gokudera stormed out of the training room and headed straight for the Tenth's office.

Without a word, he burst into Tsuna's office and immediately spat out, "Tenth! I just talked with that damned baseball idiot and-"

"Didn't anyone ever teach you to knock, herbivore?" A decidedly disgruntled cloud guardian was standing behind Tsuna's desk next to the Boss's chair. His tonfas were already out, and he looked ready to beat Gokudera to a pulp.

Even Hibari's threats were not enough to deter Gokudera who said, "Whatever, Hibari, I have something really important to speak to the Tenth about."

"I'll bite you to death."

"Now, now, Kyoya, I think Gokudera and I actually do have something important to talk about. We'll continue our...discussion later."

"Very well." Kyoya strode out the room, but not before casting another furious glance at Gokudera's direction that clearly said: _I'll get you for this._

_Che, what was that about? _"Anyways, Tenth, I just spoke to the baseball idiot, and I just wanted to make sure he didn't give you the wrong idea. There is nothing going on between us. I hate that idiot!"

As Gokudera uttered that last sentence, Tsuna's face took on a faintly disapproving expression. It was one Gokudera rarely saw, but every time he did, it broke his heart. Tsuna's eyes were so full of compassion and understanding, yet Gokudera couldn't shake the feeling that the Tenth was somehow disappointed in him. It was quite possibly the worst feeling of his life. "Do you really hate Yamamoto, Gokudera?"

"He's such an idiot! I don't like him at all, but he still asked me to be his boyfriend!"

"Gokudera, I know that you may not want a romantic relationship with Yamamoto, but don't you think you could at least consider him your friend?"

"No, the Tenth is my friend. Yamamoto is my rival."

"You can have more than one friend, Gokudera, and what are you two rivals over anyways?"

"The position of right hand man of course! Yamamoto may be a born hitman, but I've worked my ass off and no one is more loyal to-"

"Gokudera, stop. You don't need to fight with anybody over being my right hand man. You are my right hand man. You have been for years. Out of everyone I ever met you were the first to see past no-good Tsuna. You were the first friend I ever had. There is no one else I could ever consider for the position of my right hand man."

As Tsuna said this, Gokudera's eyes began to tear up. He wiped at them quickly with his shirt sleeve before sniffling and saying, "Thank you, Tenth!"

"But now that you know that, you have to figure something out. Where do you stand with Yamamoto? You're not rivals. You never were. So what are you? You don't have to tell me right now or answer at all for that matter, but give it some thought, okay? Come back any time if you want to talk. Just, uh, try to knock first in the future."

"O-of course! Thank you for your time, Tenth."

**xxxxx**

It has been a couple of weeks since Yamamoto's confession and Gokudera still has yet to answer the Tenth's question. If he and Yamamoto were on shaky footing before the confession, now there didn't even seem to be any footing for Gokudera to stand on. What made it so awful was how normal it all felt. Gokudera couldn't detect the slightest change in Yamamoto's behavior. It was as if the confession and subsequent rejection had never happened. That was what made Gokudera so irritable. Yamamoto didn't mope or seem upset at all. _If he really likes me _Gokudera found himself thinking, _shouldn't he be a little more upset that I rejected him. That idiot's acting like nothing happened. Like everything is still normal!_

Gokudera constantly found himself questioning Yamamoto's every little action- every word, every touch, ever smile. The Tenth said they were no longer rivals, but they had been at first. They were rivals and perhaps even enemies. When had that all changed? From the start Yamamoto had rubbed Gokudera the wrong way- that stupid laugh, that laid back attitude, that too-bright smile, and yet he was so damn good, the bastard! Gokudera puzzled and puzzled and couldn't find the answer. In the mean time, he stamped around the Vongola Headquarters, snarling at everyone and everything in his path and generally making everyone miserable.

One night, after a particularly annoying altercation with Ryohei, Gokudera sulked in bed pondering once again his relationship with Yamamoto. It seemed to him that everything had made perfect sense in the beginning, but somehow it had gotten confused later down the road. The only logical step, then, was to track the changes of their relationship overtime. _That's it. _Gokudera realized triumphantly. _All I need to do is make a timeline, detailing how things have changed from the start of our relationship. With the data laid out clearly in front of me, I'll be able to analyze it and come to a clear conclusion. _

Now, at last, Gokudera was on familiar footing. When it came to theory and data points and logic, he could do no wrong. He immediately pulled out a pencil and paper and got to work charting the course their relationship had taken. To his surprise, it was somewhat more difficult than he had anticipated. Gokudera had to make a lot of guesses and estimates. He noted that from start to present he still referred to Yamamoto as "baseball idiot." There were many things, however, that remained inconsistent. When did Gokudera begin allowing Yamamoto to sling an arm around his shoulder without complaint? Why was it that their arguments no longer ended with Gokudera threatening to shove exorbitant amounts of dynamite in every orifice of Yamamoto's body? When had that stopped?

Most startling, Gokudera realized that he had always taken his ability to cooperate with Yamamoto on missions as a given. After their fight with Gamma in the future, it seemed they might be able to cooperate after all, but that had not proven to be the case. In the beginning of Tsuna's reign as Vongola Decimo many missions they had partnered on went horribly awry. When had they become able to work together as a team? More than that, when had it become normal? He had naturally assumed that he and Yamamoto were the best pair for that diplomatic mission. They were an understood team. When they guardians were paired up, they were almost always together. When had that become the norm? When had the status quo changed?

In the end, Gokudera was only able to make estimates. He plotted out each year, month by month, but at times he was forced to guess by nearly an entire year about the changes in their relationship. Frustrated, confused and tired, Gokudera slumped back in bed. _Nearly four in the morning? How did it get so late? I'll analyze the chart tomorrow. With the data laid out, I can feel the result right in front of me now. Tenth, I'll have an answer to your question soon. _

**xxxxx**

**a/n: **Moving right along at my usual snail's pace. I don't mean to drag it out, but I want a chance to really show how things have changed. I can give you a hint about things to come, though. The next and final (I think) chapter is going to be: Yamamoto's Answer. I promise we'll finally get some well deserved 8059 fluff after all this build up.


	5. Yamamoto's Answer

**a/n: **Okay, so the last chapter has proved way too long, and I've had to split it in two, but here is the penultimate chapter for you, with the last soon to follow. Special thanks to Shimaki-33, ShougiKnight, masura1102, RejectedByMostButLovedByAll and DiveToWorld for the reviews. Here's the last chapter. Hope you enjoy!

**Summary:** 8059 Yamamoto has a crush on Gokudera, but Gokudera is hopelessly oblivious. Then he overhears something and misunderstands. Soon everyone in the mansion is a victim of this unfortunate circumstance.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or any of its characters.

"speaking" _thinking_

**Victims of Circumstance Chapter Five: Yamamoto's Answer**

"Oi, Yamamoto, what's the matter? You seem extremely upset this morning."

"Eh? Oh, sorry senpai. I guess I am feeling a little down today." As usual, Yamamoto and Ryohei were on their morning run around the compound. Out of all of the guardians, they were the only ones even remotely inclined to get up early. Once an athlete always an athlete. Old training habits die hard, and the two guardians still felt the drive to get up every morning and go for a run. For Yamamoto it was not only refreshing, it cleared his head and gave him the jump start he needed to start the rest of the day. Though Ryohei was never a completely silent partner, he was quiet enough to give Yamamoto a chance to think most days.

"A little down? That's extremely unfortunate! What's the matter?"

"Ah, actually, well there's someone I like, but they don't like me back."

"Oh, I see. Are you sure they don't like you?"

"Well they pretty much shouted it in my face before storming out after I confessed to them, so yeah."

"Wow, harsh to the extreme. Do you still like them after that?"

"Ye-yeah, I do. After they rejected me, I've tried to keep things normal between us. I was hoping that things would go back to the way they were between us, but he- I mean they- keep acting weird around me, staring at me all the time like they're just completely disgusted by me. I don't know what to do. I still want us to be friends at least, and I cuold help but hope that maybe, someday, we could be something more than friends."

"Is that so? Okay! Then you extremely can't give up! If you like this person as much as you say you do, then you have to keep trying. Besides, that stupid octupus head is stupid and extremely stubborn. It'll probably take a couple of tries before you convince him."

"Oh? You too, senpai? I'm beginning to think that everyone in the mansion knows what's going on."

"Yeah, well, all the guardians probably know, and Basil too. I just know because I was in the next training room over, and I heard Gokudera screaming at you. He was extremely loud. I think everyone in the headquarters probably heard, maybe everyone in Italy."

"Oh, I see."

"At any rate, you extremely can't give up!"

**xxxxx**

Yamamoto had pondered Ryohei's simple advice all morning and finally decided to attempt to heal the breach between himself and Gokudera. As morning gradually faded to afternoon, Yamamoto went in search of Gokudera, hoping to have lunch with him and apologize. He could not find Gokudera in any of his usual haunts, and Yamamoto ended at last in front of Gokudera's room as a last check before he gave up his search entirely.

Inside his room Gokudera heard a muffled knocking at his door. _Who the hell could that be this early in the morning? It's probably something important for them to wake me up. _

"Come in." Gokudera grumbled as he sat up and began to rub the sleep out of his eyes.

As the door opened, Gokudera immediately snapped (perhaps a little harder than he intended to) "Baseball idiot! What the hell do you want?"

"Oh, sorry, Gokudera. I didn't think even you would still be asleep this late."

"What are you talking about it's-"

Gokudera stole a look at the clock as Yamamoto said, "Almost noon, yeah. Actually I was coming to see if I could have lunch with you. I wanted to say some things, not a repeat of last time I promise! I just, you know, I know I upset you, and I was hoping to get a chance to talk to you about it over lunch, though I guess it would be breakfast for you, Gokudera."

"Che, whatever, maybe tomorrow. I still haven't drawn my conclusions yet."

"Huh? What do you mean, Gokudera?"

"N-nothing" Gokudera insisted, but his eyes betrayed him as he snatched a quick glance at his timeline charting his relationship with Yamamoto.

Yamamoto followed Gokudera's gaze to the chart. "Oh, what's this?" He asked as he picked it up.

Give me that! Gokudera found himself inexplicably embarrassed, even though there was nothing to be embarrassed about. It was a perfectly logical solution and his analysis was quite thorough. Still, he found himself not wanting Yamamoto to see it. Though it was far too late to prevent that now.

As he read over the chart, Yamamoto tilted his head to the side and asked, "What's this for?"

"Damned baseball idiot! It's for the Tenth."

"Huh?"

"To answer a question he asked me."

"...which was?"

"He asked me what our relationship was."

"And you drew a chart?"

"Of course. I was thinking about it last night, and I realized this was the only logical way. I used the chart to lay out all the data points in front of me. Now I can analyze the data and draw a conclusion."

"Well it doesn't look very accurate."

"What do you mean? Of course it is! Well, as accurate as I could make it anyways. I had to make a few estimates, but I think I got pretty close."

"I don't think so." Chart in hand, Yamamoto plopped down on the bed, as Gokudera shifted next to him. "Look here." He said pointing to one spot on the time line. "You have it listed that the last time you threatened to shove dynamite down my throat was some time after our first couple of missions, but it was earlier than that."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. The last time you tried to do that was right before the end of high school, when we had to study for our final exams. Remember? I got the distance formula and the quadratic formula confused and did the entire algebra section of my math study guide wrong."

"I didn't care about you getting your answers wrong, but the Tenth had copied off your worksheet. You nearly made him fail high school!"

"You said the same thing then and tried to blow me up, but Tsuna managed to stop you. At any rate, after that you never had to tutor me again, and so you never had a chance to shove dynamite down my throat."

Gokudera nodded as Yamamoto said this and quickly adjusted his timeline. Yamamoto continued to look it over and said, "Everything else looks pretty close. Except for this. You have this a year too early. You started letting me wrap my arm around you here in the spring of the next year."

Gokudera was about to ask how he knew that, when he got another look at Yamamoto. His usually light and carefree eyes had dimmed to the serious demeanor Yamamoto wore only on missions. His tone had become gradually quieter and more somber. The odd behavior only served to heighten his curiosity, but Gokudera chose not to pry. Instead he turned his eyes back to the chart, only to have his thoughts interrupted by Yamamoto. "So," Yamamoto began back to his normal carefree tone, "What do you think?"

"What are you talking about, baseball idiot?"

"You have all the data now, so what's the answer?"

"I don't know. Actually, there is still one thing I can't figure out, one crucial piece of information that's missing."

"What's that?"

"Well...I still can't figure out when you began to like me. I know it wasn't in the beginning, because you dated plenty of people in high school. I just can't seem to pinpoint when you started liking me."

"Silly Gokudera! You just needed to ask. It was here." As Yamamoto pointed to the right spot, he tone turned serious again.

"That's the same time I started letting you touch me. What happened there?"

"You got hurt. It was supposed to be an easy mission, but we were ambushed. You were shot, on the left side of your chest. I knew immediately you'd been shot in the heart. It didn't hesitate to kill them all. Somehow you were still breathing. I got you to a hospital in time, but they still said it was a miracle that you made it. Something about your heart being in the right side of your chest instead of the left."

"Yeah, it's called dextracardia."

"I think I remember a nurse explaining that to me, but I wasn't even listening. I just sat there staring at you. You were full of tubes and hooked to all sorts of machines. You looked half dead already. That's when I realized. I tried to imagine a world without you, and I couldn't. You letting one of your rare and beautiful smiles slip, you looking at me with those stunning emerald eyes, you sneaking away to play the piano when you think no one's watching, your passion, your fire, your loyalty- life would be empty without you. You're a spark of life when everything seems dim, a raging storm when all else seems dank and oppressive. I realized then that I didn't know how to live without you."

Gokudera just stared in stunned silence replaying in his head everything Yamamoto had just said. No one, not even Tsuna, had ever expressed these sorts of feelings to him. He honestly had no idea how to react. Time stretched on, and what began as a pregnant pause slowly became an awkward silence neither knew how to break. Mustering his courage Gokudera began, "Listen, baseball idiot-"

"I know; I know. You're not interested in me, and I didn't mean to bring it up again, but now you have the data for your chart, right? I know we can't be anything more, and I promise I won't ask you out or talk about those sorts of feelings ever again. Still, still I hope that when you analyze the data from your chart, it shows that we're friends."

"Ye-yeah. It does."

"Oh, good! Well then, I'll leave you to your work." As Yamamoto got up to leave, Gokudera was still dazed by the brilliant smile he had seen just a moment before. Never could he remember seeing Yamamoto more happy than the moment he said they were friends, never could he remember his smile being more beautiful. And, somehow, as Yamamoto walked out the door, Gokudera found himself wishing he hadn't left.


	6. Back to Normal

**Summary:** 8059 Yamamoto has a crush on Gokudera, but Gokudera is hopelessly oblivious. Then he overhears something and misunderstands. Soon everyone in the mansion is a victim of this unfortunate circumstance.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or any of its characters.

"speaking" _thinking_

**Victims of Circumstance Chapter Six: Back to Normal**

_At last, things are back to normal. Still, even with everything back the way it should be something's different. Something's still a little weird. I can't put my finger on it, but..._

Gokudera's train of thought had wandered from his work yet again. Though he would never admit it, he hated paperwork almost as much as Tsuna did. However, as the right hand man he felt obligated to lightened Tsuna's load as much as possible. So here he was, sitting cramped in his office nearly drowning in stacks of paperwork. Try as he might to focus on the task at hand, his mind kept wandering back to a certain swordsman.

It had been only two days after their chat and Gokudera's revelation that Yamamoto was, in fact, his friend. Yesterday had been intensely awkward for Gokudera. He found himself not knowing how to act around Yamamoto. The only other person he really considered his friend was Tsuna, but the Tenth was the Tenth, and Gokudera always knew how to act around him. Yamamoto was an entirely different manner, and Gokudera found himself not sure how to act around him. Should he be treated Yamamoto differently, as a special case? But the idea of having to cater specially to the baseball idiot just pissed Gokudera off and caused him to lash out in anger at whatever the nearest thing was (unless of course that thing was the Tenth).

Yamamoto took it all in stride and seemed totally unaffected by Gokudera's violent and unpredictable mood swings. In truth, Yamamoto was wholly used to them by now. For though the cause was new, the abrupt mood swings were, after all, old news. He easily weathered yesterday's storm until in the evening Gokudera came, at last, to the conclusion that he didn't have to treat Yamamoto differently after all. They had, though unbeknownst to Gokudera, been friends for quite some time now. Just because Gokudera had only recently become aware of that fact did not mean he had any reason to change his behavior.

_Ah! I'll never get this paperwork done thinking about that idiot! I'll finish it later. I need something to help me cool off and clear my head. _

With that thought in mind, Gokudera quickly headed for one of his favorite spots in the Vongola mansion- the indoor swimming pool. When Tsuna first discovered the Vongola headquarters had its own pool, he thought it was really much too extravagant and even suggested shutting it down, but Gokudera was incredibly happy he had decided against that. There was something wholly soothing about water, so pleasant, so calm and tranquil (perhaps not unlike a certain guardian that had been on Gokudera's mind lately).

That self same guardian turned up not long after Gokudera began swimming his laps. Once he noticed the rain guardian, Gokudera immediately asked, "What are you doing here, baseball idiot?"

"I was about to go out for my evening run around the headquarters, but I saw Mukuro and Hibari going at it. I don't want to get in the way of those two, so I figured I'd come here instead. Swimming's great cardio too."

"Che, frggin' jock."

Yamamoto just smiled and laughed, scratching the back of his head sheepishly before sliding into the lane next to Gokudera. As Yamamoto pushed off and began to swim using the butterfly, Gokudera couldn't help but notice how powerful his back and shoulders were. His whole body, of course, was perfectly muscled. Out of all of the guardians, the only one who could come close to Yamamoto was Ryohei.

_But Yamamoto's much better looking of course, even if the lawn head is in better physical condition. That idiot is not nearly as handsome as Yamamoto. _

Something about that train of thought surprised Gokudera. Since when had he begun noticing Yamamoto's looks?

_It's only natural _he reasoned. _We're friends after all, and I've known him a long time. Of course I would notice how he's changed over the years. Though, really, he was always in great shape and so tan from spending all that time out in the sun playing baseball. He's gotten a few scars since the Ninth's guardians turned things over to us. __He's definitely gotten taller too, and his face seems sharper and leaner than before. He's definitely not the same baseball-obsessed kid he was when I met him in middle school, and of course I would notice this stuff! There's nothing weird about it! I'm his friend; I'm bound to notice what he looks like. He just happens to look really good. _

No matter how hard he tried to convince himself, Gokudera knew there was still something else there, lurking just beyond his grasp, its elusiveness taunting him mercilessly. It wasn't just Yamamoto's look, Gokudera's senses seemed oddly heightened whenever Yamamoto was near. He knew every gesture the other man made. He felt every light brush when his hand might touch Gokudera's. The last two nights he seemed to remember having odd dreams as well. Though he could never remember their contents when he woke, he was certain they centered around a certain guardian with piercing hazel eyes and a smile bright enough to outshine the sun. As he tried to organize his chaotic thoughts, Gokudera swam much longer than usual and found himself quite out of breath when he finally climbed out of the pool and headed back to the changing rooms.

Yamamoto was there, too, changing back into his black suit and light blue shirt. Gokudera spent his time trying to change as quickly as possible and avoid staring at Yamamoto's admittedly well-chisled torso, though this he didn't have much success in. Gokudera had hoped Yamamoto would change and leave quickly, but this was not the case. Instead Yamamoto waited on Gokudera and slung his arm around Gokudera's shoulder as he steered him towards the door. "What a good workout. I'm feeling so refreshed. I'm starving, though. How about we grab some lunch."

"Idiot! Get off me! Who said you could touch me, huh?"

"Gokudera, are you blushing?"

"N-no! Of course not! Why would I be blushing?"

As Gokudera said this, Yamamoto leaned it closer to check, which in turn made Gokudera blush even more, ruining any chances he might have had of passing it off as the light being weird or something to that effect. "It certainly looks like you're blushing to me, Gokudera."

As Yamamoto said this, he continued to advance on Gokudera, and Gokudera found himself quickly trapped between Yamamoto and the wall. "I'm not blushing, okay?"

"I think you are." That said, Yamamoto crossed his fingers and took a daring leap of faith, "It couldn't be because of me, could it?"

"Screw you!"

That was just too much to resist, Yamamoto leaned in next to Gokudera's ear and whispered, "Gladly."

That finally sent Gokudera over the edge, he immediately punched Yamamoto in the stomach in a last desperate attempt to get away, but Yamamoto seemed completely impervious. "Damn you and your stupid perfectly chiseled abs and strong, muscular torso. If you didn't work out so much it would be a lot easier for me to kick your ass."

"Oh? So Gokudera thinks I have a nice body?"

"Shut up! I never said that!"

"Oh I think you just di-"

Yamamoto never got a chance to finish his sentence, because Gokudera cut him off by pressing his own lips against Yamamoto's, thereby shutting him up more effectively than any words could. The kiss was surprisingly sweet at first, rash yet gentle at the same time, but things quickly heated up. Gokudera could feel Yamamoto's body molding against his and what started as an innocent, chaste kiss soon turned much more passionate as Yamamoto slipped his tongue into Gokudera's mouth and quickly began teasing Gokudera's own tongue to respond.

Much too soon, they had to break for air, and Gokudera found himself gripping the front of Yamamoto's shirt and panting against his shoulder. "So," Yamamoto asked, "Now that you're my boyfriend, does this mean I get to call you Hayato?"

"What who said anything about being your boyfriend?"

"Hayato, please, will you be my boyfriend?"

Gokudera thought the whole thing was really embarrassing, but truth be told, Gokudera was terrified. He had been hurt in the past by many of the people he loved. Letting someone this close to him... Well he had never let someone this close, but as he looked into Yamamoto's eyes, he realized he couldn't say no.

"Okay, fine. I'll be your boyfriend...Takeshi." In that moment, Yamamoto's eyes lit up, and he flashed that special smile Gokudera had only seen once before, and Gokudera knew he had made the right choice. His fear had passed, because the rain had washed all of his doubts away.

**xxxxx The End xxxxx**

**a/n: **Okay, so super cheesy ending, but what can I say? I'm a cheesy kind of girl. I go in for that kind of thing. Please review and let me know what you think! By the way, I do take requests. If you have any ideas you want writing, send me a pm, and I'll be glad to write a story for you.


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